US triples military aid to Philippines in 2012

MANILA, Philippines - The United States will nearly triple its military funding for the Philippines this year, the Philippine foreign ministry said on Thursday, as tensions rise with China over disputed islands and Washington bolsters its alliance with Manila.

However, the Philippines expressed concern over what it said was a sharp decline in its share of U.S. foreign military financing (FMF) despite Manila's central role in the U.S.'s military "pivot" back to Asia.

Foreign Minister Albert del Rosario said the Philippines accounted for over 70 percent of total FMF allocation for East Asia in 2006, compared to 35 percent this year.

"We hope this is not indicative of the priority placed on the Philippines as a regional partner, as even non-treaty allies appear to be getting a bigger share of the FMF allocation," del Rosario said in a speech at the Heritage Foundation in Washington, according to a foreign ministry statement.

Del Rosario was in Washington for the first "two-plus-two" dialogue among their foreign and defence secretaries as they look at ways to deepen ties and help Manila build a "minimum credible defence posture".

Washington agreed to provide $30 million in FMF this year, up from an initial 2012 allocation of $15 million and from $11.9 million last year. In 2003, funding amounted to $50 million as Washington sent forces to help the Philippines battle al Qaeda-linked militants.

The Philippines is offering the United States greater access to its airfields and may open new areas for U.S. soldiers to use as it seeks stronger military ties with its ally and faces rising tensions with China in the maritime dispute.

The United States also agreed at the meeting to share "real-time" data on the South China Sea, suggesting it will give Manila more of its surveillance data on naval activity. The State Department also promised to explore "creative funding streams" to help the Philippine military.

Del Rosario, who previously served as Manila's ambassador to Washington, also urged the U.S. to lift conditions on a portion of FMF allocation for the Philippines.

Since 2008, the United States has withheld the release of about $3 million in military financing for the Philippines due to political killings and human rights abuses.

He said the current government of President Benigno Aquino has already taken significant steps to end these killings and has improved human rights conditions.

Since 2002, the Philippines has received nearly $500 million in military aid from the United States, according to the U.S. embassy in Manila. The amount does not include the transfer of 20 reconditioned helicopters, a Cyclone-class ship and a Hamilton-class cutter.

A second Hamilton-class cutter will be transferred later this month and the two sides are discussing the possibility of a third Hamilton-class ship and a squadron of second-hand F-16 fighters. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Manuel Mogato | Reuters | ABS-CBN News | May 4, 2012 | Article Link

Philippines to ask US for excess military hardware

MANILA, Philippines—The Philippines will ask the United States for excess military hardware in the “2 plus 2″ meeting in Washington DC next week, an defense official said Friday.

“We will ask from the US some excess defense articles and the systems that were removed from the Hamilton class that arrived earlier,” Defense Undersecretary Honorio Escueta told reporters in an ambush interview after the closing ceremonies of the Balikatan exercises.

Escueta was referring to the BRP Gregorio del Pilar, the Navy’s first Hamilton class vessel acquired last year through the Excess Defense Articles program.

Among what the equipment taken off from BRP del Pilar when it was turned over to the Philippine Navy were sensors, communications and electronic equipment and close-in weapon systems.

Manila would also ask for long range patrol aircrafts and radar systems, Escueta said.

A second Hamilton ship from the US Coast Guard will arrive in the country within the year.

Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario will meet with their US counterparts, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and State Secretary Hilary Clinton, next week to discuss “defense, security, political and economic concerns.”

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Frances Mangosing | INQUIRER.net | April 27, 2012 | Article Link

Philippines seeks US defense boost amid China row

MANILA, Philippines—The Philippines said Thursday it would seek more US military help during top-level talks next week, as it ignored a warning from China not to “internationalize” a tense territorial dispute.

Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario said the Philippines was looking to the United States to help it achieve a “credible” defense system, and wanted to extract maximum benefits from a mutual defense treaty between the allies.

Signed in 1951, the treaty calls on both sides to come to each other’s aid in times of external attacks, and the Philippines has highlighted the pact as it stands up to Beijing over rival claims to the West Philippines Sea (South China Sea).

“We are going to the United States in order to be able to maximize the benefits derived out of this mutual defense treaty,” Del Rosario told reporters.

“The idea of achieving a minimum credible defense posture is something that we should try to do.”

Del Rosario and Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin are expected to meet with their US counterparts Hillary Clinton and Leon Panetta in Washington on April 30.

The meeting comes as the Philippines is locked in an increasingly tense dispute with China over Scarborough Shoal, a group of islets in the South China Sea where vessels from both sides have been in a stand-off since April 8.

China on Wednesday warned the Philippines not to “internationalize” the issue and force other countries to take sides.

But Del Rosario said Thursday the dispute also impacted other countries that wanted unhampered access to vital sea lanes.

“I think all nations who have an interest in keeping freedom of navigation… should be watching carefully as to what is happening there,” he said.

“We would want all nations, including the United States, to make a judgment on what is happening there and what the implications are to their own country,” he said.

Del Rosario did not say what specific help the Philippines wanted in the US talks, but defense officials earlier said Manila would ask to acquire a coast guard vessel and F-16 fighter jets.

China claims all of the West Philippine Sea as a historic part of its territory, even waters close to the coasts of the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries.

Experts say the overlapping claims are a potential flashpoint that could destabilize regional security.

The Philippines has accused China of increasingly being aggressive in staking its claims.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Agence France-Presse | The Philippine Star | April 26, 2012 | Article Link